Changes All Around

I came home a couple of days ago to find a door hanger informing us that the "Phillips Road School Improvement Project" was beginning and that we would be experiencing equipment and delays over the course of the next few weeks.

Looking North East from the corner of Phillips and Teesdale

I'd never heard of the "Phillips Road School Improvement Project" before now, but the first manifestation of it is the removal of all the trees that lined the Phillips Rd. road side of Lincrest School's playground as seen below.

Looking North;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;Looking South

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It appears that the intent is to create a parking lot, or at least a drive-though area for student drop off and pick up. This has been need for way too long. . . but I can help but regret the loss of the shade trees.

I'll try to keep you posted on future developments.

Rain, Rain, Go Away

Actually, I think the rain is going away... for now. This next week should be real nice. I'm glad, because that means I won't have to haul equipment for our Spring Concert in the rain. We're doing some very nice things: 1) Copland's "Fanfare for the Common Man", 2) a real barn-burner called "Repercussions" which features the drum section split into antiphonal groups, and 3) the beautiful "Shenandoah" from the Civil Ward era.

There's not much to report here lately. Last weekend Mom and I have Friday off (a "furlough" day for the local days as a money saving device), but it didn't do me any good. I woke up feeling terrible and spent the day in bed. The next day was very rainy and miserable (I had a bad cold), but I had to go to the temple for the sealing of a young couple. (The girl is the daughter of one of my Dad's good friends in our Spanish branch.) I was to do a ring ceremony afterward for the many family and friends who couldn't come in the temple. It turned out well.

The next day we had a ward conference in the new Wheatland building. It was really a great conference, but took it's toll. The rest of the week I did my usual work at school and Church. Today I've been lazy and not done a whole lot, except I did the shopping so that Mel could stay home and work on taxes. (It was my small contribution to that effort)

Anyway, since there's not anything exciting to post a picture of, so here's a few that I may have posted earlier from our Pioneer Trek last summer. I was a general handyman and roustabout.

Me standing around waiting for the show to get on the road, and later speaking the youth

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Below is me fixing a handcart that was about to lose a wheel, and me walking off somewhere (probably to eat)
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A Visit from Japan

Over 20 years ago I had a foreign exchange student at the high school from Japan - Keiichi Goto. He was a great kid, who learned to play the trumpet, and did pretty well. He was a bright, happy young man and was a pleasure to have in class. He enjoyed high school, his friends, and the band so much that he applied for and received an extension to his visa and permission to stay second year. Over the years he has kept in touch with me via email and Christmas cards. A month or so ago he brought his parents with him and returned for a visit.

It was really fun to see him again. (That's him on the right in case you couldn't tell). Anyway, after he got home to Japan, he sent me a box with various Japanese snack food (how did he know?) and this photo that his parents shot of us.

Today's earthquake made me think of him again. I have heard yet how he's doing, but I hope for the best.

Palm Springs in the Winter

Mom & I had a fun (quick) trip to Palm Springs. I coaxed the school into paying the conference fee to the annual California Association for the Gifted (CAG) and a hotel by offering to pay my own transportation fees. So we left school early Thursday and drove down. Even with slow traffic around Bakersfield, it was still only an 8.5 hour trip - the same as driving from here to Boise. We drove home Saturday afternoon.

This is us (the cutest girl in the world and some goofy looking guy) with the Hilton Hotel where we stayed in the back ground. The downtown area is just beyond that.

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I had some really good classes and workshops at the conference. I especially enjoyed a speaker whose talk was titled "Building Moral Intelligence." It was all about teaching youth altruistic values and good character. It was well done.

We also had a good time exploring the town's thrift stores and eateries. We had a fun time at a place called Ruby's Diner (a lot like Johnny Rocket's if you're familiar with those places). I had a really good cheese burger and Mel had a HUGE chicken pot pie! I mean the thing was 8" across. (I helped her eat it)

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These are just a couple of pictures that we took along the way. Everywhere you go down there you see windmills. The photo in the right is from the trip home. Beautiful blue skies with cotton ball clouds. And this is the bad weather season. I could live in a place like that. Close to San Diego, Phoenix, and really not much farther from Salt Lake. Maybe. . .

Pictures from the Past

I look at photos of my grandchildren as they grow up and look for signs that one (or more) of them might be unfortunate enough resemble their grandpa. So far, so good for all of them. So here's a couple of photos from my younger days for comparison. That's me in front on the right in the bow tie.

;;;Circa 1962 - age 6;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;Oct 1959 - age 3

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And, of course, me on the front of the straw horse at a ward Halloween part - my favorite holiday of the year. Sometimes I think I see shadows of my face in Lucy or Atticus. But mostly I see the traits of their parents. It almost like watching them grow up again.

Happy Valentines Day to My Sweetheart

Thirty three years ago this month I had been on only one date with my sweetheart. She agreed to to go with me to a Saturday night music recital because it was the only night she had available, (she already had dates for Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday evenings). At the concert we sat in front of her boyfriend's roommate.

Afterward we stopped for an ice cream cone on the way home. I figured that as pretty as she was, and as tied up as she was with other guys wanting to be with her, I probably ought to leave well enough alone and not pursue her.

Eventually, I had the opportunity to go out with her again and tried to make a big impression. No such luck. But I kept trying, and as time went on I was able to convince her to say yes to my proposal. She made a great leap of faith to accept me.

I think acting in faith was not a new experience for her. As I look back, I really wonder what it was that she saw in me. We hardly knew each other - me from California, and her from Idaho.

I do know this though: when we were first married I was full of all of the excitement, dreams, and giddiness you can imagine. And over the years those feelings have turned to realities, mostly because of her.

I could not have imagined that so much would come from our relationship. My dreams have come true, and my prayers have been answered. And even though she deserves much better (in a husband and provider) I will be forever grateful for her staying by me and helping me become who I am. I love my sweetheart!

Stake Conference

We had a great stake conference this past weekend. This was our bi-annual broadcast conference, so we provided the priesthood leadership and evening session for all adults on Saturday, then watched the broadcast Sunday morning.

We had three women speak in our evening session (a ward Primary, YW, and stake RS Pres.) all of whom did a wonderful job. We have some pretty great women leaders in our stake. Then the stake presidency spoke. My 2nd counselor did a masterful job speaking about the deleterious effects of murmuring, including a really funny story about him getting lost in a swamp while hunting just outside of Oroville. (Ask me later and I'll recount it for you.) I wrapped up with my "Dec 17, A.D. 62 - Lazarus dies for the second time" story, and how our afflictions are not really "unto death" because of the atonement. I imagine the stake is going to get tired of hearing me long before my time is up here.

Sunday we heard from Elder Rasband, Sister Wixom, Pres. Packer, and Pres. Eyering. It was really a great weekend.

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In other news:

Mom stayed home today with a sore throat. I'm enjoying the sunny weather (which we've not had much of this year) and ran 3 miles again today. Today is Emmett's 1st B-Day, so "Hippo, Birdie, 2 Ewes" goes out to him.

Kimberly is enjoying her new (full-time) job working in a law office as a kind of para-legal. No, it's not even close to her major in Geographic Information Systems, but her boss is in the stake presidency and she says the office is nice, and the work is interesting.

David goes snowboarding at night and has a blast - including helping baby-sit Chris and Lorna's children.

The rest of the clan all have their own blogs and Facebook sites. You can catch up with them there. See ya in the funny papers!